The First Place I Come To
by Quill of Minerva
Summary: Albus is in need of medical care there is only one place where he wants to go. When he turns up on Minerva’s doorstep in the middle of the night, he gets more than he ever hoped for.


**The First Place I Come To.**

**Disclaimer: **The characters do not belong to me and never will do but I am just using them to satisfy my AD/MM needs since HBP lacked in giving them to us.

**Rating:** For everyone!

**Summary: **Albus is in need of medical care; there is only one place where he wants to go. When he turns up on Minerva's doorstep in the middle of the night, he gets more than he ever hoped for.

**_DOES CONTAIN HBP SPOILERS_**: If you haven't read it yet then don't read this!

**A/n:** This story came about from a conversation I had with Christy over AOL messenger the other evening, she made me promise that I would try and tackle it so here goes. I hope you all enjoy it and try to forget that Albus dies in HBP, I know I have. I don't live to get reviews but they are appreciated.

A huge thanks to Christy who also beta read this story for me!

The First Place I Come To. 

It was a hot, humid night in July and Minerva rolled over in bed for the umpteenth time. The rhythmic ticking of the old grandfather clock was driving her to distraction, it seemed louder than usual and Minerva felt her temples throbbing in time with the ticking. She kicked her covers off her and placed her feet on the stone floor, even the stone cobbles seemed warm. She pulled at her nightgown; it was sticking to her body and annoying her. She reached out for wand and pointed it at the grandfather clock; she muttered a silencing charm and the clock instantly became quiet. The blissful sound of silence was wonderful but after a while it became to quiet and Minerva found that she was listening out for sounds. She had not been sleeping well for nights now, it wasn't only down to the weather that was making it hard for her to get a restful nights sleep but also the fact that her best friend, Albus Dumbledore, had been away seven nights in a row.

She had last seen him on the Tuesday of last week; he had made an unannounced visit and had stood uncomfortably on the rug in the living room as he spoke. Minerva knew not to ask what he was up to because she knew that he would not tell her for her own good but little did he realise, that he simply worried her more by not telling her what he was doing. She was sure that he had something else to tell her but he left before she could get it out of him. There was something in his blue eyes that concerned her, it unnerved and raised so many questions in her over active mind. Before he had left he had cupped her face with his hands and looked into her eyes: for one brief moment Minerva had believed he was going to kiss her, but instead he told her to look after herself and get the chess board set up for his return. Minerva had watched him walk down the pebbled path that led away from her summer cottage, an uneasy feeling had settled into her stomach and was still present now.

Minerva sat on her bed and looked out of the windows, she hadn't bothered to draw the curtains shut so she had a breathtaking view of the Scottish hills from her bed. Her cottage was in the middle of nowhere, protected by a fidelius charm placed by Albus many years ago. It had been the original meeting place of the order and so had been protected from prying eyes. Deciding that she needed to change into another nightgown, she slipped out of bed and made her way into the bathroom. She stared at the green marble bath, trying to decide whether to have a bath or not. It would certainly cool her down for a while but it would also awaken her, preventing her from getting any sleep for the seventh night running. She had probably snatched a few hours here and there through the long nights but it wasn't enough to sustain her. She was aware if the dark circles that were around her eyes, she looked ghostly pale and her body wasn't listening to her. She was still recovering from the stunner attack and though she told everyone who asked that she was fine, her body was telling her that she wasn't back to full strength. The need to be clean and cool won; she turned on the silver taps and stared as the water poured from them. She added some lavender and rosehip bath oil into the swirling water, the oil had been a gift from Albus for her birthday last year and she loved it. It made her skin feel soft and made her feel totally relaxed; he had even charmed the bottle to never empty so she would never run out of it.

The bath was soon ready and Minerva slipped out of her nightgown and threw it into the washing basket before slipping into the cooling water. Her skin was no longer itchy from the heat and she felt herself cool down almost instantly, she closed her eyes and tried to think of something relaxing but images of Albus in trouble kept flashing through her mind. She wished she knew what he was doing; she could have helped him with what he was up to. Surely two pairs of hands were better than one and she didn't understand why he was keeping things from her. They had been friends and colleagues for years now, she had thought they could discuss anything, tell each other anything but she was wrong. She had always been open with him about the things in her life apart from telling him how far her feelings for him ran, she had withheld that information for her own good. She didn't like rejection but then not many people do and she wasn't going to ruin her friendship with Albus by bearing all to him.

The bath was more relaxing that she had expected and she actually found herself dropping off to sleep amongst the bubbles and relaxing scents of her bath oil. A loud, urgent knocking at the door caused her to sit bolt upright in the bath, her heart was beating fast as she climbed out of the bath and casted a drying spell on her hair and body. She rushed out into her bedroom and pulled on the nearest things, her work robes from the other morning. With her wand in her right hand, she walked through the cottage and approached the front door. She knew that only people who were aware of the cottage could find it but after months of dealing with Alastor Moody, she had become constantly vigilant.

Opening the door slowly, she looked out into the darkness and took a step back when a ghostly face appeared before her.

"Al-Albus," she said as she clutched her chest "what in the name of Merlin has happened?"

The sight of him from what she could make out in the dark took her back, his robes were torn, his face was bruised and he was clutching his right hand to his chest.

"Come in!" she urged moments later

She watched with concern as Albus staggered into her home, he was holding himself awkwardly and she attentively placed a hand on his back and guided him over to the large couch. She noticed how he winced when he sat down and she darted off back into the bathroom to gather her medical supplies. When she returned Albus had his eyes closed, she knelt down before him and placed a hand on his knee.

"Albus!" she said softly

"I didn't disturb you, did I?" he asked, his eyes still closed "This was the first place that came to mind."

"I am glad you came here," she said softly "what has happened to you?"

She watched him tense when she asked him what had happened; she knew immediately that he would not tell her. She could tell by the look on his face that he was battling himself inside, she knew he wanted to give her an explanation but she also knew that he would not give her one.

"Let me see what I can do for you," she said, changing the subject, "where does it hurt?"

In the first war against Voldemort Minerva had been an auror who had also trained in field nursing so she was able to fix and mend people as good as any medi-witch or wizard. She rooted through her medi kit and pulled out a number of potions, bandages and other bits that she thought she might need.

"Albus, " she urged "I need you to tell me where it hurts!"

"I'm tired Minerva!" he answered as his head rolled to the side

"I know," she replied "but I need you to tell me what's wrong so I can help you and then you can rest!"

She was trying to keep him talking so he would remain conscious until she could make sure he was stable enough to sleep, she cast a few charms over him and watched as they collected their results. There was no internal bleeding and his organs were perfectly fine, he hadn't received a blow to the head so concussion was ruled out. He did have bruises on his face but they seemed to be a few days old, purple and grey in colour.

"Albus," she said softly "let me see your wand hand!"

"No!" he answered groggily

"Albus," she urged, "will you behave and show me!"

She felt bad about talking to him in such a manner but he was behaving like a child and this wasn't the time for it. He grunted something and gingerly held out his right hand, his robes covered it and there was a sickening smell of burnt flesh radiating from it. Minerva bit her lip, she remembered that smell from her own chest though it wasn't as potent as the smell coming from under the sleeve. Minerva had seen some sights in all her years of life but she wasn't prepared for what she saw when she peeled back the sleeves. His right hand was black, she couldn't see any fingernails on his long charred fingers and it looked like the skin had been burnt away. Congealed blood had dried and become encrusted amongst the burns; Minerva wasn't sure if she could do anything to save the hand because it was just too badly damaged.

"Can you move your fingers?" she asked

"Not as flexible as they were once," he replied with a chuckle "but then that might be my age!"

Minerva shook her head, even at a time like this he still managed to find some humour in the situation.

"Can you try and move them for me now," she asked, she needed to access his movement "please Albus!"

"I was expecting a gasp from you," he said as he wiggled his fingers slowly "I know it can't be a pretty sight!"

"I have seen a lot worse Albus," she answered as she watched his fingers, there was slight movement "nothing surprises me now!"

"That is a shame," he replied as he looked away from her and glanced into the fireplace "I wish you did not have to see this, see me like this!"

"I am a big girl Albus," she said sternly "there is no need to moddlecoddle me because of the things you have seen."

"That might have been the case seven days ago my dear," he said as he looked down on her as she tried her best to clean the wound.

"Drink this!" she suggested as she handed him a small vial of light blue liquid "I think it is best that you don't mention anything about these past seven days because it would be pointless since you will not tell what you have been doing. Now hold still!"

Albus tried not to flinch as she cleaned up his hand, preventing infection from spreading and taking hold of his hand.

"Albus, will you drink that lotion!" she reprimanded

"I will be fine!" answered Albus who had never been one for taking potions.

"You don't have to try and be all powerful and strong in my presence Albus," she stated as she stared up into his eyes "I have seen you cry at a muggle film so drink it otherwise I'll tell Aberforth."

Reluctantly he sipped the blue liquid from the vial and shuddered as he felt it slip down his throat, it instantly got to work and Albus wasn't aware of the pain in his hand anymore. He couldn't even feel her touching it now, he was watching her as she carefully tended to him and his heart swelled. She was so wonderful to him, so accommodating and so trusting of him.

"Feel better now?" she asked

"Yes!" he replied, "You don't have to tell me, you told me so!"

"I wouldn't have said that anyway," she answered with a smile "and besides, I recall you going on at me to take my potions after I came out of St Mungo's. I would have hexed you into next year if you had continued!"

"Have you been taking them?" he asked, a playful smile on his face.

"I will let that comment go since you are a little worse for ware," she replied "I don't believe in kicking a man when he is down especially when he has an ego the size of yours!"

"Charming," rebuffed Albus.

Minerva got to her feet and disappeared into the kitchen, she needed to get some lukewarm water to bathe his hand in. She could have easily summoned a bowl of water from the kitchen but she needed a break from the smell of burnt flesh. It didn't repulse her, it was just shocking to see his hand that way and from what she knew about medicine, there wasn't much that could be done for it. He would regain some movement and be able to use his wand but he would be fragile for a while and he needed to let it heal. Knowing Albus as well as she did, she knew that he would not give his hand enough time to heal before heading off into another mission that he couldn't tell her about. He was as stubborn as her when it came to getting back on his feet, he hated feeling useless and there was more pressure on him than her to get back to full health.

She walked back into living room and found that Albus had drifted off to sleep; she stroked his forehead with her left hand and looked at him. He looked so peaceful and had a child like quality about him as he slept; he looked like he hadn't been sleeping well for nights either. Quickly and quietly she bathed his hand and then set about bandaging it for him without disturbing him. The potion she had given him would let him have a painless and dreamless sleep, he should at least get a good ten hours of sleep before stirring and she felt he needed all of those hours and more.

Pulling out her wand, she transfigured the couch into a large, king size bed with plush pillows and a sheet that would remain cool while he slept. She also changed his burnt and dirty robes into a stripy nightshirt that he would love, the colours clashed but she knew that was the way he liked them. She washed his face lovingly, gentle strokes with the face cloth and she tried hard to fight back the tears that were stinging the back of her eyes. She had the overwhelming feeling of wanting to look after him, there had always been a part of her that had wanted to do that as well as be there for him in every possible way. She loved him so much and she wanted him to know that but there was no way she could ever tell him and especially now when war was rife and he had other things on his mind. She rose to her feet and leant over him, she placed a gentle kiss on his forehead before settling down into a near by chair so she could watch over him while he slept.

The afternoon sun shone through a gap in the drawn curtains, it was yet another warm day outside. Minerva stirred from her resting place on the chair and massaged the ache out of her neck with her hands; she knew it had been a bad idea to fall asleep in a chair. She looked over at the sleeping form of her friend, in the light of day his face seemed more bruised and cut up than it had a few hours ago. She sat forward and enjoyed watching him sleep, every now and then his eyebrow would twitch and before she knew it, she was staring into two pools of blue.

"Good morning," he said softly "must say that this is a nice way to wake up!"

"Its good afternoon," she corrected as she tapped her watch "how are you feeling?"

"Like my hand has been burnt to a crisp!" he replied, matter of factly

"I'll get you some more pain relief potion," she said rising to her feet "are you feeling hungry at all?"

She watched as his eyes lit up at the mention of food, he definitely felt better if he was thinking about his stomach. She smiled and got to her feet, telling him to stay in bed while she went and made breakfast for them both. In the kitchen, she quickly set to work making pancakes, scrambled eggs, bacon and sausages. They were some of Albus' favourite breakfast delights and she knew that he would be grateful for a hearty breakfast, if he could manage it. She made fresh coffee and a pot of tea before pilling it all on a tray that followed her back into the living room where she found Albus sitting up in bed looking at his bandaged hand.

"A knut for them?" she asked softly

"My hand is ruined isn't it?" he asked

"You should have a word with a specialist from St Mungo's," she replied as she handed him the vial of potion she had picked up from the side cabinet when she had walked back into the living room.

"It would be a waste of time," replied Albus "I know what they will say but at least I still have some movement in it. I can still wave a wand."

"How does it feel today?" she asked as she sat back down in the chair near his bed, the breakfast tray landed on the bed between them both.

"A lot better?" he answered, "Does it disgust you?"

Minerva was taken back by his question; she certainly hadn't expected that so early on in their conversation.

"Albus," she said softly "let me ask you if my scars from the stunners would disgust you?"

"Its different," he said defensively

"How?" she asked

"Yours are not visible!" he answered

"But that doesn't make them anymore easy to live with," she replied honestly " do you remember what you told me when you took Potter to the Dursleys?"

She watched as he turned away from her, she knew he remembered what he had said to her but also knew that perhaps he felt differently now it was him.

"No, they would not disgust me!" he said as he turned back to look at her

"Pardon?" she asked, slightly taken back by the change in topic.

"Your scars would not disgust me!" he answered, "I haven't seen them but I know they would not because it is still you."

"Precisely Albus," she said softly as she reached out for his free hand "scars do not change who we are and how we feel for others. Scars are a testament to bravery, no matter what you have faced. You could have fallen out of a tree at age of five and gotten a scar down your face or fought a troll and got one in the same place. Do not be ashamed Albus. I do not see you any differently."

"I wish I could tell you more," he said softly "you deserve to know but I can't. I need to keep you safe Minerva, I mean the less people who know the better."

She placed a finger over his mouth and told him to be quiet and to eat something.

"Will you feed me?" he asked with a cheeky grin

"As far I know," she replied "you can still use the left hand since it hasn't a bandage on it."

Albus pouted in her direction and then clumsily, dropped a knife on the bed and shook his head. He shot her a helpless look and pointed towards his grumbling stomach.

"Albus," she said with a giggle "you know I wouldn't do this for anyone else but you!"

"That is why I came here!" he answered with a smile "Knew you would look after me!"

"I am too nice to you for my own good," she said with a sigh "come on open up!"

The next half an hour was spent with Minerva cutting up Albus' breakfast and feeding him like a child, he seemed to be thoroughly enjoying the attention and she was happy to give it to him. She drew the line at trying to help him drink his coffee and in the end resorted to a straw. She knew he was perfectly able to pick up the cup in his other hand and drink from it but she was enjoying the fact that he needed her despite the fact that he was over acting.

"Albus," she said softly as the afternoon wore on "did you mean what you said about my scars?"

"I did indeed my dear," he answered "with or without them, you are still the beauty you always were."

"I wonder if those potions I am giving you," she said with a grin "are making your brain go funny!"

"My brain was funny before that," he added "but I meant what I said about you!"

Minerva felt herself blush under his intense look, she wasn't sure exactly how to take his words and really it shouldn't be him reassuring her. He was the one who was hurt and was dealing with pain, not her. She caught his eye and smiled.

"If I didn't know you better Albus Dumbledore," she said, "I would say you were flirting with me!"

"You can't know as well as you thought you did then," he replied with a smile "you wouldn't hex a sick man for overstepping the line now would you?"

Minerva's mind was trying to process what he was telling her, had the potions she been giving him made him talk rubbish or was he actually saying the words because he meant them.

"Ask me anything," he suggested, "I'll prove I am of sound mind!"

"What's your favourite flavoured jam?" she asked

"With a question like that, I am beginning to doubt the state of your mind," he said with a chuckle "but the answer is raspberry."

Minerva had no idea what processed her to ask him such a stupid question, if she wasn't still shell shocked, she would have cringed and made a polite excuse to leave the conversation before she had chance to say anything else stupid.

"Why did you come here?" she asked "Why not St Mungo's?"

"This was the first place I came to because you were here," he answered honestly "I knew that if you could accept me then nothing else would matter."

"Accept you?" she asked "Merlin's sake, what are you talking about."

"Your opinion matters the most to me," he answered, "what you think of me matters most to me. If I am good in your eyes then I am good to myself!"

Minerva was stunned, she had no idea and she couldn't believe she hadn't seen this before. She reached out for his good left hand and squeezed it, it seemed like the best thing to do at the time but he pulled his hand from hers and looked away.

"I have suddenly become rather tired," he said softly, "would you mind leaving me for a bit?"

"Albus," she replied as she perched on the end of his bed "you can't push me away as soon as you say something like you did to me. You know I would accept you even with three heads, you would still be the man I love!"

"Love?" he questioned

"Yes, love" she said, throwing caution to the wind " I love you!"

"Even with the hand?" he asked

"Yes!" she said as she carefully laid a hand on his bandaged right hand

"But would you not flinch every time I touched you?" he asked.

"Albus," she answered as she looked deeply into his blue eyes "it is still you, your touch, only you!"

Minerva spoke the truth, she had tended to his hand when he had come to her and she had seen it at its worst. It truly didn't bother her especially if her love for him was returned. She could tell that he was reading her facial expressions to see if she was just saying that to him to make him feel better.

"Can I ask you another question?" she asked

He nodded and looked down at her hand that was still laid upon his bandaged hand.

"Do you love me?" she asked bravely

"Yes I do!" he answered with a coy smile "Very much so!"

"Then that's all I need to know!" she said as she leaned forward and kissed him softly on the lips.

She felt himself smile to himself before kissing her back softly, she knew that she would support him no matter what and she was glad that he had come to her first because he would have been the first place she would have gone to.

The End!


End file.
